The two devious demon brothers Wendell and Wild have to face their arch-enemy with the help of the nun Sister Helly, who is notorious for expelling demons. However, the brothers are not only plagued by her, but also by her altar boys.
Jordan Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Lyric Ross, Tamara Smart, Angela Bassett
Henry Selick makes a ghoulish return to directing thirteen years after his last feature Coraline, and yet again he proves he’s one of the best in the stop-motion game.
While I wouldn’t consider this to be Selick’s best work, he still delivers a fun story that’s full of heart, and humor, and his usual spooky style. The best part of the film would have to be the characters. Our main protagonist, Kat Elliot, a young teenage girl who lost her parents in an accident in her youth, is the heart of the film, and her rebel personality makes her a fun character to watch, and root for in this story.
Something I have to mention, is that Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key play two demons, that funnily look a lot like their real life counterparts. These two characters are the comic relief of the film, and bring a lot of good laughs to a story that would otherwise be quite dark.
This film proves that there is more room for more mature stories in animation! This is rated PG-13, so while it doesn’t go too far, there’s more adult humor and things that would appeal to a broader audience, which is something a lot of studios could learn from.
One last thing I thought was pretty cool was the LGBTQ+ representation in this film! One of the main characters is a trans boy, and I thought it was a cool inclusion since that’s not something typically seen in animated films such as this.
Wendell and Wild is a fun watch for this Halloween season, worth checking out if you’re a fan of Selick’s past work, or looking for something not so scary to watch with the family.
